1. An Initiative for Standardized Geospatial Formats Optimized for Mobile
GeoPackage:
An Initiative for Standardized Geospatial Formats Optimized for Mobile
US Army Geospatial Center
April 11, 2012

2. What is GeoPackage?
A single container for the storage and use of vector, raster, and tiled caches.
Available for use on a variety of mobile platforms.
Described by a manifest.
Defined by an open standard, free of license.

3. Introductions
Kevin Mullane – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Army Geospatial Center (AGC)
Paul Daisey – Image Matters LLC,
Contract Support to the AGC
Image Matters LLC is a software technology and professional services company that produces software products, develops advanced technology solutions, and provides consulting services to government and commercial clients.

4. Purpose and Motivation
To introduce the GeoPackage concept to the open source community.
Motivation:
GeoPackage responds to the need among government and non-government organizations to maintain situational awareness when constrained by limited or non-existent power or bandwidth.
Involvement of the broader community is sought so as to converge on an open solution.

5. Today
Effective coordinated large scale collaboration in military, homeland security, and disaster management relies upon the sharing of geospatial information.
An explosion of map applications for mobile handheld devices has resulted in a variety of incompatible data formats and interfaces.
No existing standard simplifies the provisioning of all types of geospatial data on assorted makes of mobile handheld devices.

6. Objectives
Enable the distribution of packaged tile caches, raster, vector and descriptive data in an immediately useable form.
Realize capability from existing off-the-shelf solutions including commercial and open source software.
Engage developer community through appropriate forums to arrive at non-proprietary solution.

7. Initial Use Case: Fixed Product Distribution
Geospatial information is collected, processed, analyzed, exploited, and packaged as data products in enterprise server environments
Distribution of the geospatial foundation by networked server or removable media
Products shareable throughout organizational levels and among all participants
GeoPackage stored once per platform to support multiple applications

8. Additional Potential:
Local Data Collection
Collection of observations
Sharing of collected observations
Geospatially Enabled Analytics
Geocoding/reverse geocoding,
Mobility analysis,
Visibility analysis, and much more

9. Initial GeoPackage Requirements
Manifest
Single self-describing file container to facilitate management and distribution
Tile Cache
JPEG and PNG Tiles
Multiple Tile Matrices
Vector
Simple Geographic Features
Support direct access and update by apps

10. Subsequent GeoPackage Requirements
Raster
Support “raw” raster formats for visualization and analysis
Elevation Data Coverages
Routes
Web Services
for creation, management and distribution
Potential Manifest Extensions?
Metadata
OGC Web Services (WMS, WMC, WFS, WCS)
Other Web Services (OpenStreetMap)
What else?

11. GeoPackage Web Service CONOPS

12. Current Plan
Identify, prototype, test and specify mechanisms for mobile geospatial data storage, transfer and use to meet identified requirements
Base the solution on existing consensus standards, other open specifications and existing technologies; don’t (re)invent unless absolutely necessary
Do this through an open public collaborative process involving key stakeholders in both the development and user communities
Demonstrate interoperability between key stakeholders
Gain approval of a consensus GeoPackage specification
Achieve widespread commercial and open-source GeoPackage implementation
In a one-year time frame

13. Standards / Technologies Base
ISO/IEC 9075:1992 Information Technology - Database Language SQL
OGC r4 OpenGIS® Implementation Standard for Geographic information - Simple feature access - Part 1: Common architecture Version:
OGC r4 OpenGIS® Implementation Standard for Geographic information - Simple feature access - Part 2: SQL option Version:
Portable Network Graphics
ITU-T Recommendation T.81 (09/92) with Corrigendum (JPEG)
OGC r9 OGC Web Services Common Standard Version: (Manifest)

14. Summary GeoPackage will meet a recognized need.
An open specification is in the best interest of the community.
Collaboration is believed to be the most effective way forward.
Your participation is encouraged and welcome.

15. Public Collaboration Process
Google Groups
Repository
TBD

16. Contacts Nathan Frantz 703-428-6919 Nathan.P.Frantz@usace.army.mil
Kevin Backe
Paul Daisey
Kevin Mullane